• Journal of the Microelectronics and Packaging Society
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.33-42
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• 2009

A polymer-based flexible neural probe was fabricated for monitoring of neural activities from a brain. To improve the insertion stiffness, a 5 ${\mu}m$ thick biocompatible Au layer was electroplated between the top and bottom polymer layers. The developed neural probe penetrated a gel whose elastic modulus is similar to that of a live brain tissue without any fracture, To minimize mechanical residual stress and bending from the probe, two new methods were employed: (1) use of a thermal annealing process after completing the device and (2) incorporation of multiple different layers to compensate the residual stress between top and bottom layers. Mechanical bending around the probe tip was clearly removed after employing the two processes. In electrical test, the developed probe showed a proper impedance value to record neural signals from a brain and the result remained the same for 72 hours. In simple in-vitro probe characterization, the probe showed a great removal of residual stress and an excellent recording performance. The in-vitro recording results did not change even after 1 week, suggesting that this electrode has the potential for great recording from neuron firing and long-term implant performance.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers Conference
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• 2007.11a
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• pp.429-429
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• 2007

For various applications of liquid crystal displays (LCDs), the uniform alignment of liquid crystal (LC) molecules on treated surfaces is significantly important. Generally, a rubbing method has been widely used to align the LC molecules on polyimide (PI) surfaces. Rubbed PI surfaces have suitable characteristics, such as uniform alignment. However, the rubbing method has some drawbacks, such as the generation of electrostatic charges and the creation of contaminating particles. Thus, we strongly recommend a non contact alignment technique for future generations of large high-resolution LCDs. Most recently, the LC aligning capabilities achieved by ultraviolet and ion-beam exposures which are non contact methods, on diamond-like carbon (DLC) inorganic thin film layers have been successfully studied because DLC thin films have a high mechanical hardness, a high electrical resistivity, optical transparency, and chemical inertness. In addition, nitrogen-doped DLC (NDLC) thin films exhibit properties similar to those of the DLC thin films and a higher thermal stability than the DLC thin films because C:N bonding in the NDLC thin filmsis stronger against thermal stress than C:H bonding in the DLC thin films. Our research group has already studied the NDLC thin films by an ion-beam alignment method. The $SiN_x$ thin films deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition are widely used as an insulation layer for a thin film transistor, which has characteristics similar to those of DLC inorganic thin films. Therefore, in this paper, we report on LC alignment effects and pretilt angle generation on a $SiN_x$, thin film treated by ion-beam irradiation for various N ratios

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.36 no.6
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• pp.776-788
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• 2012

Octa[8-{4-(4'-cyanophenylazo)phenoxy}]octyl and octa[8-{4-(4'-cyanophenylazo)phenoxycarbonyl}]heptanoated disaccharide derivatives were synthesized by reacting cellobiose, maltose, and lactose with 1-{4-(4'-cyanophenylazo) phenoxy}octylbromide or 1-{4-(4'-cyanophenylazo)phenoxycarbonyl}]heptanoyl chloride, and their thermotropic liquid crystalline and photochemical phase transition behavior were investigated. All the {(cyanophenylazo)phenoxy} octyl disaccharide ethers (CADETs) formed monotropic nematic (N) phases, whereas all the {(cyanophenylazo) phenoxycarbonyl}heptanoated disaccharide esters (CADESs) exhibited enantiotropic N phases. Compared with CADETs, CADESs showed higher isotropic (I)-to-N phase transition temperatures. Photoirradiation of the disaccharide derivatives in a glass cell or in a cell with a rubbed polyimide (PI) alignment layer at a N phase resulted in disappearance of the N phase due to trans-cis photoisomerization of azobenzene, and the initial N phase was recovered when the irradiated sample was kept in the dark because of cis-trans thermal isomerization and reorientation of trans-azobenzenes. The rates of the photochemical N-I and the thermal I-N phase transition of disaccharide derivatives in a cell with a rubbed PI alignment layer were faster than those in a glass cell, and were significantly different from those observed for the monomesogenic compounds containing cyanoazobenzene and the 4-{4'-(cyanophenylazo)phenoxy}octyl glucose and cellulose ethers. The results were discussed in terms of difference in cooperative motion of azobenzene groups due to the flexibility of the main chain, the number of mesogenic units per repeating units, and the distance between the azobenzene groups.